The embodiments herein relate to actuators and, more particularly, to an actuator having a rotary flexure mechanism, as well as a method of converting rotational input to axial output with the rotary flexure mechanism.
In a wide variety of applications in which precise control of the amount of translation of a linear actuator device is important, it is imperative that the output of a motor be precisely reduced and transferred to the input of the linear actuator device. Optical telescopes are an example of an application with such requirements. In such devices, there is often a need to move a mirror closer to, or further away from, another mirror to focus the image on an imaging device. The step size and range of movement is dependent on the optical system. Certain challenges include requirements related to high axial stiffness, millions of life cycles, as well as thermal and temporal stability. Typically, these requirements are met with a motor and screw design, with the screw being ball, roller, or lead screws, for example. Such designs include a large number of parts, thereby adding weight and complexity to the overall system.